Hindus have become the third largest “religious” group in the UK, with over 1 million Hindus estimated to be living in the country.
On the surface, Hindus seem well represented in the UK. If we look a little deeper, it becomes evident that anti-Hindu sentiments, or Hinduphobia, is commonplace in many political, legislative and media spaces.
A 2006 report undertaken by the Runnymead Foundation and Hindu Forum of Britain showed that Hindu community groups faced systemic discrimination. 95.6% of Hindus are ethnically Indian (or from the Indian subcontinent), and so a lot of anti-Hindu bigotry may be masked as or intertwined with anti-Indian racism.
With a recent increase in instances of Hinduphobia, we have put together safety advice for Hindus celebrating festivals.